Moments Like This
by Singer of Water
Summary: There have only been a few important moments in Bucky's life: meeting Steve, reuniting with his best friend and getting his memories back, and marrying Tracey. And now this moment in the hospital.


Bucky bit his lip. His leg was bouncing as he sat in his seat. He couldn't sit still. He stood up and began pacing back and forth, wringing his hands together. He ignored the looks he was getting from some of the people around him. They didn't matter. His footsteps kept up a steady rhythm as he walked back and forth down the aisle of seats. His mind was spinning and was slowly blocking out all the sounds around him. The sound of his feet thumping against the white tiled floor, the buzzing of the fluorescent lights, the intercom announcements sounding throughout the building, the doors opening and closing with the soft whir and whoosh they made, the people whispering and chatting amongst each other, the children crying or whining to their parents.

The children.

He froze in mid step and saw a little girl playing with some dolls in a seat next to her dad. The man had a smile on his face, but it was strained due to worry. But it was a smile none the less as he played with his little girl.

Bucky took a deep breath before starting his pacing again. He chewed his lip. How was Tracey doing? Was she okay? Was everything okay? Those and so many more questions were swimming around in his head. But he couldn't get the answers to any of them.

He looked up when he heard someone call out his name. Rushing through the door was Steve, Sharon, Barry, and Mrs. Madison.

"Buck," Steve said, staring at his friend as if he had two heads. "What are you doing out here?"

"Wh-what do you mean?" the metal armed soldier stuttered, eyes going wide and heart pounding as he looked from one person to the other.

"Why aren't you with Tracey?" the blond man asked.

"I-I thought I wasn't allowed in the room with her?" Bucky said. His heart was pounding now. He swore it was going to burst out of his chest.

"She's by herself?" Mrs. Madison exclaimed.

She ran to the nurses' desk and was immediately showed through the door. Bucky watched her go before whipping his head back to his best friend. He felt like he couldn't breathe. What did he do?

"Bucky, you're allowed in the room," Steve said, putting a hand on his friend's shoulder. "You and I both know things have changed since the forties. A lot of things. Tracey needs you right now. This is your child. Not just hers. Yours."

Bucky stared at Steve. His eyes were wide. His child. His child. It kept repeating in his head. This was his and Tracey's child. And he had left her by herself.

His attention snapped back to reality. He didn't say a word as he bolted to the nurses' desk. The poor young man behind it nearly fell out of his seat when the super soldier practically slammed into the desk.

"What room is Tracey Barnes in?" he shouted, voice desperate. He needed to get to his wife. Fast.

The male nurse gave the soldier directions and offered to take him to the room, but the offer fell on deaf ears. In a matter of seconds Bucky was running down the hall and was outside the delivery room. He could hear Tracey crying from inside. His heart clenched. He rushed into the room, but made sure not to scare anyone in there by his random bursting into the room. He found Tracey laying in the bed with her mother holding her hand.

"Bucky!" she cried out, before scrunching up her face in pain.

Her husband rushed to her other side, taking her hand in his. "I'm so sorry, Tracey. I'm so sorry for leaving you by yourself. I'm here. I'm here," he said in a rush as he brushed some hair out of her face. "I'm here, doll."

His wife gave him a small smile before crying out in pain again.

"Mrs. Barnes," the doctor spoke out. "I'm going to need you to push. The baby's almost here."

Bucky's heart fluttered. The baby was almost here. His thoughts were interrupted by Tracey crying out once more. He squeezed her hand lightly compared to the tight grip she had on his. "Breathe, Tracey. Breathe. Everything is okay," he soothed, squeezing her hand again.

"One, two, three. Push!" the doctor instructed.

Bucky's heart swelled when he heard another sound mix together with Tracey's cry. It was another voice crying out. A tiny, high pitched cry. He looked to the doctor and saw him sit up. In his arms was a tiny bundle. He and Tracey's tiny bundle. He let out a breath he never realized he was holding. It was their baby.

The doctor smiled at the husband and wife after he cleaned the baby up and wrapped her in a pink blanket. "Congratulations, Mr. and Mrs. Barnes," he said, bringing the blanketed baby to them.

A smile made its way on the super soldier's face as he stared at the tiny thing. He looked at his wife, who had a tired, but large smile on her face. He leaned down and kissed the top of her head before she took the baby in her arms.

"Hi, sweetie," the hacker said. Tears were welling up in her eyes as she stared at the squirming infant in her arms. "Hi, Annabeth. I'm your mommy." Tracey placed a kiss on the baby girl's head, laughing a water laugh when the baby's arms reached upward and she let out a gurgle.

Bucky stared at the baby. His baby. His daughter. He let out a small laugh, smiling largely at the tiny bundle in his wife's arms. He smiled at his wife, kissing her head again. "She's beautiful," he said in a hushed voice. His smile grew wide when Tracey handed him their daughter. His heart skipped a beat as she placed in his arms. He carefully shifted her, nervous of his metal arm. He stared down at her. She was so tiny! She was the size of his forearm, but a bit smaller. She squirmed, her arms flailing out. "Hi, baby girl," he whispered. He held her close to him, scared he would drop her. "I'm your daddy, Annabeth." He leaned his head down and kissed her head. He chuckled as she reached a hand out blindly towards his face. He laughed a she gurgled and whimpered.

It wasn't until a tear fell that he realized he was crying. This was his baby. This was his little girl, his daughter. Annabeth was here in the world now. He would do everything to keep her safe. It had only been a few minutes since he's seen her – no! It has been nine months – and he loved her. This was his daughter! She was here!

He looked to Tracey, who was resting her head against the pillow on the bed and smiling up at her husband. His smile grew and he moved closer to his wife, holding Annabeth between them.

"You were great, darling," he whispered, kissing Tracey's forehead. "I love you."

"I love you too," she whispered back. She looked to Annabeth and giggled as the baby squirmed as Bucky handed her back to her mom. "Hi, sweetie. I love you," Tracey whispered to her daughter.

Bucky watched as Annabeth's hand flailed out again, reaching blindly around her as she tried to decipher the world around her. He was so lost in with the new addition to his life that he didn't realize he reached a metal finger towards her. He froze as he stared at the baby's hand moving towards his finger. His metal hand. He wanted to do everything to keep it from her. He didn't want to hurt her. His heart skipped a beat when her tiny hand clasped the metal finger. Annabeth stopped squirming as she clutched his finger. She had calmed down. Bucky's face broke out into a large smile as he stared at his baby girl.

He let out a shaky breath, smiling at his daughter. "I love you. I will always protect you. I love you so much, Annabeth."

**Thank you to the guest for the review from Life at the Tower. I had the idea of writing Annabeth's birth as a oneshot, but never got to it. So thank you for the push!**

**If you want to ask the Avengers, Madison twins, and anyone else a question, just leave a message on my tumblr. If you have a prompt you'd like to see me write just leave me a message on tumblr, PM me here, or leave it in a review. I accept any and all prompts, including AU prompts!**

**Thanks for the support guys! You're awesome!**


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